Call for Bids to Host ICAD in 2026

The Board of the International Community for Auditory Display (ICAD) is calling for bids to host the conference in 2026.

Note that ICAD expects to continue the practice of holding an annual conference roughly on a rotational basis in North America, Europe and Asia. Thus, we expect that the bid for 2026 would identify a location in North America or Asia.

Statement on Inclusiveness

ICAD strives to be inclusive for all its members and potential members. Conference committees should consider conditions that might prohibit or exclude members of our community participating when making site selections.

Content

Bids should be brief (no more than 5 pages), and include the following information:

1. Organizers. At a minimum, name the following organizers and include a brief bio that highlights prior experience in organizing conferences:
   1. General Chair(s)
   2. Papers Chair(s)
   3. Workshop Chair(s)
   4. Concert Chair(s)
   5. Student Think Tank Chair(s)
2. Proposed location. Provide the following:
   1. Brief description of the conference city
   2. Brief description of possible conference venues
3. Planned dates. ICAD is normally held towards the end of June and early July each year. Indicate what resources you have used to propose dates that do not overlap with other relevant events. Alternatively, propose co-locating with another conference.
4. Draft program for each conference day.
5. Statement of commitment to work with the Board of ICAD for the conference.
6. Planned direction/organization of the conference. The default is that the direction of the conference and the general way it is organized, will not change from year-to-year. However, proposals for such changes are welcome, if they would improve the conference in some way (e.g. to co-locate with another conference).
7. Management plan. Provide an outline of how the conference will be managed, from the time the bid is awarded, to the concluding event at the conference. At a minimum the bid should explain what tools will be used, how frequently meetings will be held, who will be responsible for which tasks, and how experiences accumulated at prior conferences will be utilized.
8. Budget estimate. The estimate should provide a plan for completing the conference with a surplus of funds.
9. Cost estimate for participants. The estimate should indicate that participants can make the trip to the conference at a reasonable cost, when compared to other conferences.
10. Supporters and sponsors. List entities that have committed to supporting the conference (e.g. the General Chairs’ home departments) and provide their letters of support. Also, list entities that you plan to approach for support, such as partners in industry.
11. A plan to promote equality, diversity and accessibility. ICAD embraces equality, diversity and accessibility. To promote equality, the conference must work towards providing equal opportunity to all to participate in ICAD community activities. These activities include, but are not limited to, publishing, reviewing, volunteering, participating in decision-making regarding the conference, and organizing events. To promote diversity, the conference must work towards the inclusion of members of those groups that are underrepresented in the communities that make up the stakeholders of the conference. To promote accessibility, the conference must work towards securing accommodations for all of the stakeholders of the conference who need them. These accommodations will include, but are not limited to, sign language translation, captioning, and accessible physical conference spaces.

Submission

For full consideration, bids should be submitted by email to Matti Gröhn (matti.grohn@iki.fi).

Bidders can contact Matti Gröhn via email to discuss any aspect of the bid.